Milwaukee Bucks: Will team rebounding finally change for the better?

The Milwaukee Bucks have long struggled in terms of rebounding, but is there a chance for that to finally change this season?

The 2012-13 season ended for the Milwaukee Bucks with Brandon Jennings‘ famous “Win in 6” proclamation falling flat in a four-game sweep against the Miami Heat, yet there’s another reason to look back at that season as a significant milestone for the team.

With Jim Boylan at the helm to finish that campaign, the Bucks finished fifth in the NBA in terms of rebounds per game (44.0). In the five seasons since, Milwaukee hasn’t come remotely close to that mark and have cemented their reputation as one of the league’s abysmal teams on the glass.

Under Larry Drew, Jason Kidd and Joe Prunty, the franchise has been rooted around the bottom 20 percent of NBA teams on the glass on an annual basis, while gradually regressing in ranking over that time.

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The Bucks were 24th in rebounding in both 2013-14 (41.1 per game) and 2014-15 (42.1 per game), 27th in 2015-16 (41.7), 29th in 2016-17 (40.4 per game) and dead last in 2017-18 (39.8 per game).

As the NBA has evolved, rebounding is no longer at the top of many teams’ priority lists, but that doesn’t mean it’s an area which doesn’t need to be addressed.

Milwaukee doesn’t necessarily need to be one of the league’s best rebounding teams in order to fuel further development and success across their roster in the coming years, but it seems safe to say they’ll need to at least improve upon their current status as the very worst rebounding team in the NBA.

The Bucks’ status in that regard is even more puzzling when you consider Giannis Antetokounmpo was one of just 14 players to average double-digits per game last season, indicating they should be well-equipped to be more competitive in that department.

Milwaukee’s failure to do so speaks as an indictment of their team rebounding, while also showing up many of the issues the Bucks have fought in terms of lacking strength and size inside for a number of seasons.

With that in mind, there’s some reason to believe the Bucks may have made moves that could help them bridge the rebounding gap between them and the competition this summer.

Brook Lopez and Ersan Ilyasova aren’t necessarily thought of as two of the NBA’s greatest rebounders, but both players possess interesting skills in that area which could make for a major boon in a cumulative sense.

In spite of his size and consistent opportunity over the years as a center, Lopez has only averaged more than eight rebounds per game on two occasions. That kind of cursory statistical analysis will often leave Lopez appearing to be one of the worst rebounding centers in the NBA, but a deeper dive tells us otherwise.

This was explained in regard to the Lopez twins by Ben Falk of Cleaning the Glass (subscriber only), as he highlighted how a more macro look at team rebounding can be very instructive in quantifying an individual’s personal impact on the glass.

Much like his brother, Robin Lopez, Brook excels in using his body to shore off space and box out under the glass, ensuring that teammates can corral rebounds if he’s unable to get them for himself. This team-first approach was explored further by Sports Illustrated’s Rob Mahoney in an episode of his Breakaway podcast centered around Robin Lopez.

Ilyasova has been steady if a little underwhelming on the defensive glass throughout his career, although he has shown an ability to thrive on the offensive boards over the years too.

In spite of being a little on the small side for players considered as rebounders, Ilyasova has ranked in the 80th percentile or better on three occasions in terms of the percentage of his team’s missed field goals he was able to secure, topping out in the 95th percentile in 2013-14 with the Bucks.

Neither Lopez or Ilyasova are likely to contribute as lead rebounders at a high volume, but with Antetokounmpo in tow that isn’t what the Bucks necessarily need. Instead, the focus should be for a supporting cast who can do the right things around him and create opportunities for improved rebounding as a unit.

Lopez and Ilyasova could certainly fit that bill, although arguably the biggest change of the summer for the Bucks creates its own questions.

Mike Budenholzer’s Atlanta Hawks teams struggled similarly to the Bucks on the glass throughout the duration of his tenure as head coach, with the one exception being a ninth-ranked season with Dwight Howard manning the middle in 2016-17.

Coming from the San Antonio Spurs, offensive rebounding has never been a focus for Budenholzer’s teams with the emphasis instead being placed on getting back quickly on the defensive end.

Defensive improvement will certainly be the top priority for the Bucks, but whether Budenholzer can improve on his teams’ previous history in terms of rebounding is another interesting subplot to monitor.

Milwaukee’s free agency signings certainly create the potential for a team rebounding jump in the coming season, but with the details of how Budenholzer’s Bucks will play still something of a mystery, it remains to be seen whether one of the team’s greatest weaknesses will be remedied this season.